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It's not your typical haunted house -- architecturally speaking, that is. Definitely not the steep-gabled Victorian stereotype, the eponymous edifice in House on Haunted Hill is a low-slung, flat-topped, Frank Lloyd Wright affair. But don't let that fool you: there're plenty of mysterious goings on within, and the film tells the story of a small group of brave -- or greedy -- souls who are promised $10,000 each if they'll spend the entire night there. The onscreen host of this rather campy haunted house party is played by Vincent Price, and he and the ensemble cast mix it up pretty well as the night goes on. But the real master of ceremonies here is the legendary B-movie schlock thrillmeister, producer/director William Castle. Castle provides plenty of the requisite cobwebs, secret passages, and low-budget things that go bump in the night -- not to mention the vat of flesh-eating acid in the basement. (There was also "Emergo," an in-theatre flying skeleton to shock moviegoers during the original release -- a signature Castle gimmick.) And the director makes sure that the female contingent screams their hearts out on cue. The plot is half ghost story and half drawing-room mystery, with more than a few twists and turns before the metaphysical issues are resolved. Of course, by the time the ghosts vs. gaslighting question is answered, the audience has had too much fun to care. Gregory Baird

All Movie Guide

A perennial favorite of the "Shock Theatre" TV circuit, House on Haunted Hill stars Vincent Price as sinister gent (you're surprised?) Frederick Loren, who resides in a sinister mansion on a sinister hill, where seven murders have occurred. He makes a proposal to several strangers, offtering $10,000 to anyone who can last the entire night. Loren festively gives each of his guests a tiny coffin containing a loaded handgun, designed to protect them from the spooks that emerge in the house over the course of the night. The picture hinges on its surprise ending, which packs in several by-now-familiar twists. When originally released to theaters, House on Haunted Hill was accompanied by one of those gimmicks so beloved of producer/director William Castle: the gimmick was "Emergo," and it involved a prop skeleton that "emerged" from the side of the screen at a crucial moment to frighten the audience. Like most of Castle's best films, House didn't really need the gimmick, but its presence added to the fun -- especially when second- and third-time viewers responded to "Emergo" by bombarding the skeleton with popcorn and empty soda bottles. Hal Erickson

Product Details

• UPC: 844503000545
• Source: LEGEND FILMS
• Region Code: 1
• Aspect Ratio: Pre-1954 Standard (1.33.1)
• Presentation: B&W
• Language: English
• Time: 1:15:00
• Sales Rank: 36,758

This DVD is also available as part of a box set:

• House on Haunted Hill/the Last Man on Earth
• Great Scary
• Vincent Price: the House on Haunted Hill / the Bat
• House on Haunted Hill/the Devil Bat
• Great Horror Classics 8
• 3 Vincent Price Greatest Horror Classics of All Time
• Great Horror Classics 4
• Horror Classics Collection
• Horror Classics: 50 Movies
• House on Haunted Hill/the Last Man on Earth
• Horror Mega Disc
• Great Horror Classics 4
• Great Horror Classics
• Ghost Collection
• Fright Night Combo
• House on Haunted Hill/Last Man on Earth/the Bat
• Chilling: 20 Blood Curdling Horror Classics
• Scary Movies
• Horror Movie Classics (5pc) / (Coll)
• Great Horror Classics 4
• Horror Collection: 250 Movies
• Prince/Lee Horror Collection
• Horror Movie Pack, Vol. 2

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